


Peter Parkers BioChem Field Trip

by maroongrad



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017), The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Avengers Compound, Bullying, Decathlon, Field Trip, Flash is a dick, Gen, I should be grading papers, IW never happened, SI, School, Spider-Man - Freeform, Tony is a great mentor, class, forget about CW too, lesson plans what lesson plans, not all teachers are oblivious, spiderman - Freeform, tired of the standard field trip trope and trying something new
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-02-15
Updated: 2019-02-22
Packaged: 2019-10-29 05:08:05
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 7,799
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17801591
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/maroongrad/pseuds/maroongrad
Summary: Peter's senior Biochemistry class goes on a field trip to Stark Tower. Yep, same ol' Field Trip Trope but hopefully a different take. Tony and Pepper are acting as parental figures alongside Aunt May, and Peter spends plenty of time at the Tower and Compound. Assume all the Avengers are a big happy family and IW never happened.  But, Flash is still a jerk, most people aren't really sure the intership exists, and Tony and Pepper decide to something great for their favorite intern.  More realistically, as functioning Adults(tm) the Avengers do not spend all their time playing MarioKart and engaging in prank wars with nerf guns. This does not mean they are not little shits though ;)





	1. The Permission Slips

**Author's Note:**

> I have a fanfiction account under maroongrad. As a teacher and a mom, it's been languishing for some time. I have plenty of half-written chapters that never got finished floating on my computers right now. So, of course, I switch to a new platform and new fandom. Chances are excellent this will end up half-finished and languish too but, hey, I'm giving it a try now that we are having snow days like crazy and I have some free time. Assuming I ignore all adulting I should be doing. I'm a science teacher and I started off doing some microbiology genetics work in grad school, so hopefully the SI things will make sense. I d*mn well better know what I'm talking about for the non-computer science references!  
> I use a lot of words. I think it would physically kill me to be concise. If you don't like wordy, sorry! I also have no beta. I don't make a lot of typos, but I am the worst at going back to fix them. If it's there, it'll probably stay there.  
> I write for myself and I don't pay much attention to reviews, but if you have good tips or suggestions, please post them! I will eventually read them. Attempts at trolling will be ridiculed; I'm way too old to care what a teenager troll says. But anyone of any age can have the creativity to give me plot ideas and input, and I will welcome it! Even if I don't do anything with it, it'll sit in my brain and may show up at a later date or influence my writing at another time.  
> Tagging is fairly random; suggestions on how to make the story easier for people to find with better tags? Very appreciated!

Biochemistry was actually difficult for Peter. Honestly, it wasn’t that it was actually DIFFICULT, but most of it came so easily to him that when he encountered a part that didn’t, it was inexplicably difficult to wrap his mind around. All the acronyms didn’t help, either. NAD, NADH, FADH2, FMN, and more were melting his brain. He thought that if he could actually work on this in a lab, it might be much easier for him. With all of it on paper, it was a challenge to keep straight! 

He might actually get a B if he didn’t start studying more than a quick skim of material right before the test! That would mean either less time in the lab or less time on patrol, and he wasn’t sure which was more important.

Three things made the class worthwhile. Most of the Academic Decathlon team was taking it with him and he’d gotten Ned, MJ, and Cindy on the team with him. The teacher, Dr. Robertson, was a semi-retired actual lab biochemist who decided that teaching a couple high school courses to advanced students was better than being completely retired. Having her share her actual lab experiences (and the occasional lab accident!) was interesting. She’d done some neat stuff, worked in a handful of major companies and important research labs, published and contributed to dozens of papers, and was completely comfortable sharing all of that with them.

The final reason? She’d worked in a handful of major companies and important research labs and had zero reservations about pulling strings and calling in favors to get them some absolutely amazing field trips. There was one to the Mayo Clinic she was working on getting the funding for, and they’d been to two universities and the research department of a pharmaceutical company already. She had landed another field trip for them, and was practically vibrating with excitement. Dr. Robertson was the oldest and the most energetic teacher he had but today was exceptional even for her! He hadn’t seen her sit down once.

“Alright, I’m going to pass out field trip forms. You know the drill...face down until I tell you to flip them! These are an extra page long, you are supposed to get two papers, it’s not an accident!” She practically bounced down the rows, handing out the field trip papers. A steady murmur followed her around the room; everyone was curious about what could have her that excited about a field trip! Was it something even better than the Mayo Clinic? Two students told her they had two pages and tried to hand one back; Peter saw MJ start sketching the Look she gave those students for not listening.

All papers handed out, Dr. Robertson counted down. It was a class tradition that everyone find out at the same time where they’d be going and they had to admit, it did make it more fun. “Three….Two….One...FLIP!”

The excitement lasted less than a second, when he read “Stark Industries, New York Headquarters.” Then it turned to annoyance.

He’d been the one pulling the strings for this field trip! Tony and Pepper had assured him, with apologies, that they couldn’t possibly let high school students into the high-level biological labs of HQ. It wasn’t something he was terribly interested in for obvious reasons but the rest of his class would have loved it, and he wanted MJ and Ned to have a chance to see the labs. He’d begged and pleaded and tried to get even just a little field trip for a few students and been stonewalled. Ned,and once MJ, had at least seen his lab and been up to the living quarters but they’d never gotten to see anything else. He’d been working on just having Ned, MJ, and maybe Cindy or Abe come visit him at work and see more than a quick glance of his lab, at least. Tony had absolutely put his foot down on that. And yet, here was the evidence that Tony had just been messing with him.

The entire class was invited on a field trip. They’d be seeing...let’s see...Mechanical Engineering, Chemical Engineering, BioChemistry and Molecular Biology, Computer Design and Programming, and...wow. Tony and Pepper were giving a tour of the ENTIRE research section of HQ. Departments were mainly differentiated by which equipment was in the labs; Mass Specs over in Chemistry, SEMs in nanotech labs, servos and welding and even solar panels in Robotics, and an impossible amount of glassware in Synthetic Chem labs (where Peter spent most of his time). Researchers were strongly encouraged to connect with researchers in other departments and collaboration was the norm. So...touring the entire building did make sense, but it was far above and beyond the normal four-hours-and-lunch tours that were standard for University groups. No wonder the permission slip was two pages long! How were they going to do this in only one day?

They weren’t.

The second page made it an overnight trip, with students staying in the tower guest rooms, normally reserved for visiting scientists, business executives, and even sometimes families of the Avengers. The entire class and chaperones would be staying overnight. And...Avengers? If any Avengers were present, the class might have a chance to meet with them. Bruce and Tony were very likely to be there. Scott occasionally visited as part of a collaboration between SI and Pym Tech, and Hope was there less often but for the same reasons. The other Avengers were upstate...Oh. The trip also included a visit to the Avengers Compound to look at the labs that designed equipment for the heroes not based in New York (everyone except Peter, Tony, Bruce, and Nat). Most of that last page was a monster non-disclosure agreement. 

His friends and teammates would be having the field trip of a lifetime.

Unfortunately? Flash and two of his cronies were also in the BioChem class and he’d have to deal with them. And...yep. They were already egging each other on to harass him about his “internship” and “knowing Spiderman”. Super hearing for the win, he was prewarned. And oh, was he going to enjoy THIS. It would be a long week before the trip, but so worth it at the end. His classmates would be thrilled! 

The bell rang and everyone shuffled out, voices high and fast in excitement. Dr. Robertson caught him as he left. “Peter, I need to speak with you for just a minute.” He waved his friends on past, then waited, uncertain of why he was being kept back.

“I wanted to thank you. I received an email from Mr. Stark himself, explaining that you had requested this trip, over lunchtime today. I didn’t have a chance to speak to you before this class, not and get the slips printed out before everyone went home. Because of this, I didn’t mention the role you played in getting us this trip. I hadn’t even applied for a trip, the tours are university-level only! Did you want me to mention to the class that we owe the trip to you?” Her gaze was knowing; she was one of only a few teachers that Flash had slipped up around. Her hearing was notoriously good and he’d landed two detentions for inappropriate language before realizing this. Since then there had been a blessed lack of “Penis Parker” in her room. She’d also rounded on Flash once for harassing Peter about his internship when the class was debating where they’d like to tour. “I’m aware that some of your classmates haven’t been...supportive...of your success but your friends,” she meant MJ, of course! “have kept that from escalating.” She stacked the handful of remaining forms neatly and tucked them away in the top drawer before turning to meet his eyes. “Would you prefer to have me mention it in class next week, or wait until the trip itself to teach them to do their research and fact-checking before making statements? Regardless, *I* am personally grateful for a chance to peek inside the labs at SI. They are renowned for their tech and scientists!”

She was definitely his favorite teacher at that moment. He chose his words carefully.

“I think that anyone who should know I was trying to get us a field trip already knows. I think the others would...benefit...from a more hands-on experience rather than just hearing it in class.” Dr. Robertson grinned at him at his deliberate re-phrasing of one of her favorite quotes, and waved him out the door, still smiling as he headed to his locker and home.

Parker was definitely one of her favorite students. Smart, sweet, and with the perfect touch of snark to make teaching him both fun and challenging. Flash would have had potential if he’d ditched the sycophants and gotten actual friends that encouraged him to be a decent person. Instead, they were amused by his attempts at snark and sarcasm and his verbal harassment of Parker, and Flash didn’t have the independence to ignore them. They didn’t have much of a future, but if Flash could get a serious lesson about his behavior, he had some potential. Nothing like Peter and his friends, but it was frustrating to her to see someone who was competent and really not that bad of a person acting like an ass to stay popular. From what she’d seen? If he wasn’t entertaining and didn’t have access to a pool and a lot of money, his friends would leave him in a heartbeat. He’d have to learn a painful lesson sometime.

She was just spiteful enough to hope it would be this Friday, early in the trip!


	2. Buses and Betting

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Once again, zero editing and proofreading. I found if I take time to do that? Never gets published. So if you see a glaring mistake, please let me know. Thanks for the tips about the tags and the reviews. Glad you're appreciating the story. And, yeah, the description of the teacher's response is pretty typical. Interfere too much and students don't develop the skills needed to defend themselves. Interfere too little, and kids get bullied. 
> 
> And...seriously. If a field trip to SI actually took place, the only teachers NOT chaperoning would be the ones that the admins banned from going!

Aunt May had smiled a bit at the permission slip, but that faded into a small, worried frown. “You will have to be very careful about Spider-man there.”  
“I know, Aunt May, and I will be.”  
“Yes, I know, but you spend a lot of time at SI. Mostly as an intern, but some as Spider-Man. And upstate? You aren’t Intern Parker there, you are Peter and Spider-Man. You have habits that you may fall into that could be revealing.” A sigh, as she pushed an errand strand behind her ear. “You will be there with two dozen intelligent teenagers. You’ll also be there with Tony and whichever Avengers are at the Compound that weekend. They’re also used to interacting with you as Spider-Man there. If they do anything wrong, or you do anything wrong, one of those highly intelligent teenagers may put two-and-two together. I’m honestly surprised you got away with no one figuring you out at the Washington Monument!”

“Errrr…”

“Well, besides MJ, but no one will be sneaking anything past that young lady any time soon. I’m glad she’s on your side, kid!” A hand reached out to ruffle his brown curls. “She’s got more people smarts than any four normal people, and the only one I’ve seen on her level is Pepper Pots. So, do me a favor and listen to her and to Pepper. Even if you slip up, those two will help out. Natasha, if she’s there, ask her for a bit of help on this too.” An expressive eye roll, and she added, “If anyone can help you mislead people or sneak something by, it’s her. And if not, hey, she can disappear the body for you, right?”

Peter laughed at that, gave his aunt a hug, and headed off to change and go on patrol. May was right. He had three of the smartest women in the world on his side. Even if someone at work slipped up, he’d be fine. Snapping his mask over his chin, he slipped out and headed off to his other work.

OMGWTFBBQ

Field trip day! Oddly enough, he was not just on time but a bit early. No, it wasn’t at ALL because he was looking forward to a bit of malicious enjoyment at Flash’s expense. It really wasn’t...much...but Ned and MJ were looking positively predatory and the...enthusiasm...was catching. He waved at them, trotting over with his bag on his shoulder.

“Hey, Ned, M-” The greeting was overwhelmed by the sound of obnoxious bass. Yep, Flash had arrived. It wasn’t long before he was strutting over with his pair of followers. He didn’t have time to say much before the students and what was likely the entire science department of teachers was herding them onto the bus. The norm for a high-profile trip like this was one teacher per five students. The ratio was...substantially less. Hopefully Flash wouldn’t let it inhibit him.

He, Ned, and MJ made sure they were at the front of the bus line by getting there so early. As planned, they were able to pick from any seat and quickly grabbed the ones in the center of the bus. They wanted everyone to see and hear Flash when he began his very predictable tirade. Flash shot him a smirk as he passed on his equally predictable trip to the back of the bus, but refrained from saying anything as there were two teachers (freshman Biology and...wait...was that the music teacher?) right behind him. His loyal followers were not as intelligent and one of them stopped to try and make some sort of Flash-style remark. Peter had no idea what that remark would have been because the teacher right behind him immediately snapped, “Keep moving Dave. It’s not like there aren’t 20 people behind you trying to get to seats.” 

Peter didn’t smirk.

MJ did.

Ned didn’t smirk, either. He flat-out laughed.

Phones out but bags stuff safely under the seats, the three settled in to chat. Ned and Peter crammed onto one seat, MJ in the seat ahead of them, draped over the back to talk a bit. Her seatmate was yet another teacher...who promptly pulled out her phone, pulled up a book, put on some noise-canceling headphones, and ignored them all. Yes, Peter thought, perfect. Flash would say whatever he wanted but wouldn’t do anything physical, not with a teacher right there. She might not hear but she might see it. 

“Got your phone ready?” MJ looked as if she expected it to be a “No”, but she always looked skeptical and disappointed. However, both of them waved their phones at her. 

Peter had gotten a Starkphone for each of them at Christmas. Tony had seen him shopping Amazon and Ebay for presents he could afford, and promptly disappeared only to reappear with a half-dozen boxes of phones. 

“I’m supposed to test these for bugs. Here. You’re a beta tester. Have the others tell me what they think too.” 

While Peter did make money as an intern, he could only work a few hours a week and too much pay would raise eyebrows in the accounting office. He made the same as every other intern, and it went half to Aunt May and the rest split between savings and, well, honestly it just piled up in the bank because when the hell did he have time to spend it? At least Aunt May could work a normal number of hours each week, and was talking about taking him on a vacation. Short, but a vacation. And...the phones. 

He’d immediately divvied them up among friends and Aunt May with a spare for himself because, well, spidermanning and phones were not a good combo. Thank Gates for cloud storage! And today, they’d be checking out the video app and the camera and microphone. Peter logged onto youtube, MJ and Ned opened up assorted social media accounts, and...just waited.

It didn’t take long at all.

“Hey, Pe...ter. Peter. PETER. PETER PARKER!” Peter shot an annoyed glance at Flash, who was now yelling from the back of the bus. Ned’s phone was up and recording and MJ was more subtly following the action with hers. “So, how about that internship? You know, the one that you somehow got? When you weren’t even a senior yet?” The Not-Dave friend beside him elbowed him, whispering something in his ear. Peter didn’t bother trying to hear it, Flash would just repeat it in a moment. “You gonna be our tour guide, huh?” Peter and MJ exchanged A Look. What sort of science intern would be a tour guide? They had research to do, and that didn’t involve the history of SI and who everyone in the Tower was, where they worked, what they did, and such. A marketing or PR intern, sure. If they were really unlucky. 

“No, Flash, I will not be your tour guide. I may end up in my lab for part of the tour.” Red flag in front of a bull. All they had to do was wait...and it took just a few minutes for Flash to utter the sentence they’d been waiting for.

“Bet you never even applied for an internship. There’s no way they’d take a loser like you and you’re way too big a wimp to even fill out an app. Maybe you’ll get lucky in university and they’ll take you on to make copies and get coffee, huh!”

“You bet? What are you betting? Or is this just you babbling? I don’t think any of us were paying enough attention to know.” MJ’s snark, delivered while she appeared to be web browsing, spurred him on.

“Oh, yeah, let’s make this a bet.” Flash was positively gloating. “I could bet whatever I wanted since you totally don’t have this internship. You’re gonna be embarrassed and more broke than ever.”

“So, not betting anything, then. Got it.” All three of them turned from Flash, dismissing him. Being ignored is one of the most horrible experiences for Flash and he was yelling at them. 

“I bet everything in my wallet. What are YOU gonna bet, Pe-Peter?” 

At this, Dr. Robertson looked up from the front and said, “Eugene Thompson. There will be no placing of bets, poker games, or other similar financial wagers on this ride. I recommend you close your mouth, open your phone, and look at the Student Handbook. If you persist in attempting to bet money, we can turn the bus around.” 

Peter was impressed, they hadn’t discussed this with her at all, but it was playing right into their hands. He didn’t know if she heard MJ and was helping goad Flash onwards or if they just got lucky, but it was the perfect thing to say. MJ took over at that point.

“Well, Eugene, you seem to think Peter is going to embarrass himself. So, I think embarrassment is a great bet. No money involved. Peter is lying, you get to gloat. So, what will you do when you find out he’s got a real internship and knows Tony Stark and Spiderman?” 

 

Ned’s turn.”Nothing. He’s just talking to hear himself talk at this point.” He turned to Peter. “Whether you have an internship or not, we’re still friends and we’re still gonna have fun.”

Bless Ned and MJ. That was exactly what Flash needed, the implication that NED didn’t fully believe Peter. 

“Oh yeah, Lying Peter Parker is gonna be embarrassed and then some. Make any bet, ‘cause I’m gonna win!”

“Alright.” MJ stood up, briefly drawing all eyes to her. The teacher from the front shouting at her to remain seated just made sure all eyes were on her, even when she did sit back down. “Peter is lying about a fake internship, you get to embarrass him to the tour guide and any SI employee you want. Make a video of it, post it online. Peter is telling the truth? You make a video and post it online, apologizing for not believing him and saying you’re an idiot, we record it tonight and it goes online from your account, our accounts, everything.” She didn’t say that Ned had spent several hours finding all of Eugene’s friends and family’s accounts and would be sharing and sending it to aaaall of them. As well as everyone else at school. Immediately.

Flash was laughing and gloating, the smirk on his face was going to look great when they clipped this segment out as the opening to his apology video. “Yeah, that works. My imaginary video for his imaginary internship.” He and his friends high-fived a bit, but MJ wasn’t done.

“Okay, I think everyone on this bus heard that, right? Flash says Peter doesn’t have an internship. If Peter is lying, Flash gets to tell everyone about it at SI and post a video of it online. If Peter does? Flash makes a video apologizing for not believing him and admitting he’s an idiot. One of them is making a video tonight, at SI.” 

Every student eye in the bus was on Flash at this point. As everyone was in their seats, there was no physical altercation, no yelling or shouting, no throwing of items, the teachers just kept a weather eye on the situation. So far, it was typical teen posturing and as long as it went no further, they’d just let them interact. And MJ wasn’t about to get herself in trouble. “Flash, you agree? Remember, the whole bus is watching you and if you back out of this, they’ll all know.”

He only looked uncertain until Dave and Not-Dave started whispering to him. “Oh, yeah. And I’m gonna have SO much fun watching Lying Loser Poser there look like an idiot. I got a lot of followers, hope he’s prepared for the shame.” Smirking, Flash settled down.

With him looking forward to the reveal of Peter’s lies, he wasn’t going to bother them much for a bit. Just brag to his friends and everyone around him about how it was all going to go down. While he sat at the back of the bus being noisy?

MJ and Ned were editing the footage of his bet, and posting it online. Flash wasn’t going to be able to back out of this one. If he did? That video would go online too.

Honestly, no one really cared what a high school student said or did as a stupid bet. But, as the only HS group to ever tour SI and maybe the only non-political tour EVER of Avenger’s Compound? Lots of their friends were following their friends on the BioChem field trip. Not likely anyone else at another school was going to watch it, but it ought to spread pretty fast at Midtown.

Since Ned had spent several hours hacking about with Peter and MJ, plus just plenty of friend requests and follows, they had a pretty good fraction of the seniors and some of the rest of the school that were about to get the first video. Flash wasn’t real happy when it flashed up on his social media accounts, and for a moment he actually looked worried. Then he covered it up with bravado, made some more boasts...and said nothing to or about them the rest of the trip.

MJ sketched him.


	3. Orientation and Hello, Friday!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I kept some of my favorite bits I'd read in other stories, such as the Avengers Museum, and put some of my own tour experiences in there, too. FRIDAY makes her appearance and is developing a bit of a teasing personality; I blame this on the interactions with Peter and watching him and Tony together. As always, if you see an error, and it's more than a minor typo, point it out, the help is appreciated! No beta and no proofreading and sometimes I miss things.... It's a very long chapter considering they only go from the bus to the lobby, and a lot of it is just background information to fill out the setting and prepare for the rest of the story.

Even with traffic, the trip from Midtown to SI took less than 45 minutes. With Flash silent the last 20, it seemed even faster. It was just enough time to finish the last edits and posts before the bus was diving into the parking garage for the Tower. What went even faster was the unloading of the bus! Everyone had been restricted to a single carry-on sized bag, and, not wanting to be left behind, everyone had brought a single carry-on sized bag. Aside from the short shuffle as ear buds landed in pockets and jackets, purses, and bags were grabbed, there was no delay as the students bailed out to mingle excitedly by the elevators. A second group, nearly as large and nearly as excited, comprised most of the Midtown science department and a handful of other teachers.

“Well,” thought Peter, “All the other classes may not have gotten to go, but, hey, looks like they all got subs!” That generally meant a few interesting albeit educational videos or team projects (the teachers knew better than to assign anything that meant sitting silently and reading or writing. It wasn’t going to happen. So, they just went with team projects with subs and everyone was happier.)

Waiting for them were two of the Tower guides. For security reasons, there was never a single person assigned to a group; should something go wrong like someone on the tour getting injured, there was always someone to work with the rest of the people. At some point in the past, a tour of investors had “lost” a member when their guide was dealing with a sham medical emergency. With no AI in the tower, the woman had been found nearly an hour later, with flash drives stuff full of images she’d taken of everything from custodial staff to physics equations on the board in a lab. Corporate espionage seemed to be quite lucrative, and tours had been suspended until Jarvis and later Friday were installed and a minimum of two guides worked with each group.

Well, they’d have their work cut out for them with this group. Peter didn’t envy them, at all. In short order everyone was herded onto the two large elevators and heading to the lobby.

“Welcome to SI! And congratulations on being our first high school tour group!” The senior tour guide was bubbly and energetic, gesticulating broadly as he indicated the brightly-lit lobby. Dressed professionally in a neat, trim suit with short-cut tightly-curled black hair, his appearance was definitely at odds with the personality reminiscent of a golden retriever puppy, all bounce and grins. The junior guide appeared a bit older, and her look was calculating and professional as she scanned the group, probably counting heads and looking for obvious problems. Well, Flash was keeping his mouth shut and Dave and Not-Dave were following suit, and Ned was silent as he watched his classmates’ reactions, so, no problems were going to be obvious.

As the last of the students exited the elevators, they moved into the Orientation Rooms. These were just off the lobby and contained brochures, two walls of small lockers, bottled water, and anything considered useful for a tour group. Everyone shuffled into a chair as the junior guide took a position in the front and clapped her hands for their attention.

 

“As LaRon said, welcome to SI! Your tour will be for an extended period, and no one wants to carry their bags everywhere. You’ll be overnighting, and we’re happy to keep those bags here for you if you wish. Phones are allowed, as are pictures, in most areas of the tours. At times you will be asked to place your phone in a secure storage area before entering a lab. Please take this time to choose a locker. Keys include lanyards, please place those around your neck to make sure you do not lose them. While we have backup keys, trying to remember which locker is yours is not a fun way to spend your time here! 

Place anything you do not want to take on the tour with you into the locker of your choice. You will have a chance to retrieve items prior to lunch, and bottled water and snacks will be provided. If you require additional snacks for any reason, please let either of us know and we will make certain that something is brought for you if you don’t wish to carry your own.”

“Thank you, Savannah,” said LaRon. “Once you have stored your items, we’ll need you to do a few more things. On the front table you’ll find drawstring bags, badges, and markers. Please write your name clearly on a bag and a badge. The bag will hold your phone and other electronics in the labs that do not allow such items. The badge will help us identify you by name if needed. Please make sure that we can read the name so that we do not accidentally call you something like Ooo-Wargarble.”

A chuckle ran through the teachers at this, and a voice from one of them clearly said. “This means you, Rachel and Fred!” Louder laughter at this. Peter grinned; he knew Fred and just how terrible that guy’s writing was!

“When done, you can clip the bag to the same lanyard that has your key on it, and then peel and place the nametag in a visible location on the front of your clothing. Grab a bottle of water if you want one, we recommend writing your name on that too, and return to your seats.”

The tour guides moved to the side, chatting quietly over the din as students picked lockers, slammed them shut (because, hey, students), babbled excitedly about being at STARK INDUSTRIES!!! The teachers took one look at the cluster around the locker and went to get their tags and bags first. Midtown did not hire dumb teachers….

It took a bit of time, but it wasn’t long before everyone was seated with a bottle of water and, for many, some sort of fruit or cracker snack. Breakfast had been more than an hour previously and these were teens. Peter no longer had the option of skipping breakfast but it was a safe bet many of his classmates had done just that. The rest, well, even the standard non-powered teen was always hungry!

Savannah moved back to the front, and it was a credit to Midtown that voices were off and eyes on her as soon as students saw her. She smiled at them, and continued. “You’ve met LaRon, and I’m Savannah. Tour guides rotate through groups and some sections of the tower have a specific guide for that area, such as our museum.” Peter perked up at that one. Museum? Since when was there a museum? Maybe he WAS spending too much time on the lab floors…. “However, there is one tour guide that is there for every single tour.” Looks of confusion, because how could one guide be there for more than one tour? They’d seen two other Orientation Rooms in use besides this one! Peter smiled to himself at that. “The other guide is SI’s best employee, and thankfully she’s never asked for a vacation. FRIDAY is an AI, and she runs the tower for us. During our tour, she’ll be keeping track of each of you. Don’t worry about getting lost or separated; as soon as that happens, she’ll alert one of us to come help you. She’ll also be watching to make certain you are following the requirements for leaving electronics out of restricted areas and otherwise abiding by our guidelines.” Savannah stepped back, motioning LaRon to begin his section. He’d been bouncing a bit on his feet and was quick to step up and take his section of the introductory lecture.

“She has cameras everywhere and sees everything; you will be recorded throughout the tour, and if she spots someone doing something banned or illegal, well, there’s no arguing with her. She has 100% of our trust and if she says something occurred, it occurred. Also, if you ask anyone a question they can’t answer, all tour guides and many Tower employees can ask her directly and she’s always happy to share information. She’s our Siri, Alexa, and Cortana all rolled into one and supercharged, and I don’t think we’d function without her. She won’t respond to you on the tour, but in the Orientation Rooms, she does. Everyone, please say hello to Friday!”

A chorus of Hellos, some hesitant, some enthusiastic, and some simply puzzle, followed this. Friday’s voice responded, and the only ones that didn’t jump were Peter, Ned, MJ, and the two tour guides. Friday’s merry lilt spoke up, moving from speaker to speaker as she spoke so that it sounded as though she was walking through the group. Peter was impressed. That was a neat trick and he’d never seen (heard?) it before. Friday was developing creativity and a sense of humor!

“Welcome, Midtown School of Science! I know you’ve been told this before, but congratulations again on being invited to SI for a tour, and one of very, very few overnight visits, ever. I’ll be helping you with your tour and tonight, in our guest suites, you’ll be able to speak with me directly. While there are always people working in Stark Tower, the number is much lower at night and, well, I get bored.” No mistaking it, there was a chuckle there. Peter was so proud of his little sister at that moment! “With a lot fewer demands on my time and attention, I’ll be there to help with whatever you need tonight. During the tour, I’ll just be making sure no one gets lost or injured and that all guidelines are followed.” At that, the introductory speech should have ended, but Friday continued. “You may not know this, but three of your classmates have been welcome guests or otherwise involved with SI,” oh crap ohcrapohcrap...he wanted Flash to know he worked here but not right at the beginning! “Because they’d impressed Boss with their manners and intelligence, as well as the constant requests by ONE OF THEM…” and her voice moved to directly over Peter’s head. He was regretting feeling proud of her developing sense of humor and creativity…. “It was decided to extend our first-ever invitation to a group of high school students to tour our labs...and the first-ever tour group invited to not only stay overnight, but also travel to the Avengers Compound! We’re all very excited to have you here, and hope that you have a wonderful time...and that we see at least a few of you back here during your college years as interns or even full-time Stark Industries scientists!”

FRIDAY gave a little clicking sound that she made to indicate she was done speaking; it was specifically chosen because it sounded final. No one ever seemed to wait for her to say more, it was the definitive end-of-her-speech. And the beginning of a whole lot of confused conversations and a very clear “Oh SHIT” look from Flash at the terrible trio.


	4. Stark Tower Has Awesome Security

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's hard to get writing time and mine just ended. I do have more of this laid out in my mind, but my chance to get it written without interruption is done. Hopefully I can add more this weekend.

Peter didn’t think he could get any more red; he was blushing so hard his face felt like it was on fire. Ned was openly laughing at him, if quietly, and MJ...well...she was looking at him like only MJ could. It wasn’t a smile, it wasn’t a smirk, it was almost but not quite expressionless, but anyone who knew her knew it was as good as a belly laugh from almost anyone else, and completely at his expense.

He was very relieved when after a few seconds of his blushing and the sudden conversations and bubbling questions and increasing volume of his classmates, Dr. Robertson stepped forward.

“I didn’t mention this to you before,” she said as she stepped in front of Peter, pulling all eyes towards herself. “But, it is thanks to Peter’s requests that we have this field trip. I hadn’t even applied, because while I have managed to secure some trips well beyond the norm, SI has a very firm policy against field trips by anything less than college upper-level science students. Even those are rare. It was a very pleasant surprise and great honor last week to be invited, by Dr. Stark himself, to bring the entire BioChem class. MJ, Ned, and Peter really opened this door for you all, so please, do your best to learn everything you can and take advantage of this very unexpected and wonderful opportunity.”

Now it was Ned’s and MJ’s turn to be entirely embarrassed. Flash just stood there in silence, you could almost hear the gears in his head turning to reach a very uncomfortable conclusion. As Peter watched out of the corner of his eye, Not-Dave leaned forward to whisper something at Flash, who turned around immediately and actually snapped at his friend. What he said wasn’t audible, not even to super hearing, but the tone and posture made it clear that Flash was Not Happy. Either because of his crony or just using his crony to vent anger on, Peter didn’t really know or care. 

He kept the smirk off his face and didn’t make it at all obvious that he was observing Flash’s response.

Ned and MJ, once they got over the embarrassment of being the center of attention (you’d never know MJ was embarrassed if you weren’t looking closely...her ear tips were bright red although her expression remained Classic MJ), made no secret that they were amused at the predicament Flash had just landed himself in. 

One final master stroke. 

“Excuse me, Mr. LaRon?” Ned’s hand went up, waving frantically to get his attention. “MJ and I have been guests here, but can you confirm what Peter Parker’s position is at SI? Is he an intern, the kid of an employee, some sort of basic lab tech, that sort of thing? MJ and I both know, but I don’t know if anyone else does and I think Peter ought to be proud of his accomplishment.”

LaRon and Savannah looked at each other. Clearly, neither one knew, and LaRon spoke first. “Actually...I think I might have seen him on the lab floors once or twice, but...I really couldn’t say. There are, as of this morning, 7,421 full-time employees in the SI tower and over 400 interns in everything from marketing to engineering to PR to business management.” Ned wilted slightly, but Savannah stepped in immediately. Those two were clearly a well-matched team. They weren’t finishing each other’s sentences but maybe each other’s thoughts, because LaRon didn’t look a bit surprised as she spoke.

“However, we do have our third tour guide to ask, and she’ll know.” Friday didn’t even wait to be asked, her cheerful lilt immediately filled the room, focused from the speakers above Peter.

“Peter is one of our top science and engineering interns, and trusted enough to work on some very highly classified projects. Which ones is, obviously, classified information. But I can confirm that he’s an intern and has his own lab space here. Ned and MJ have been able to visit there, but it’s going to be off-limits to a large tour group. Sorry, kids!”

MJ tapped her screen to end the recording of Flash’s face and reaction.

OMGWTFBBQ

Peter had known most everything about the lobby when they crossed it. Savannah had explained how many people used it every day, from tour groups to employees. Safety features such as bullet-proof glass and the ability to seal off each orientation room to create a safe space, as well as the collection of obvious and not-so-obvious security guards, were pointed out to them all.

“We’ve never had an incident since I began here almost two years ago, but it’s not unheard of for large banks and corporations to be targeted by everything from terrorists to angry ex-employees. Thankfully, Dr. Stark takes our safety very, very seriously. Iron Man or not, he and Mrs. Potts designed this lobby to be a very safe place for anyone in it and spared no expense to do so. With Avengers living here and visiting here, you’d think no one would be foolish enough to attack, but should something happen, you’ll be safe. The lobby is even opened during any emergency situations as a safe shelter!”

LaRon pointed out the banks of elevators, explaining that the ones for staff-only only had a button panel as a back-up. Generally, Friday would know who was in the elevator and automatically take them to their floors. They were going to the large, general elevators instead. Another tour group had just entered the right-hand elevator and the doors slid silently shut as they moved that direction. The center elevator pulled open, clearly waiting for them, bright golden light shining out. That had to be one of Peter’s favorite parts of the tower. The light was bright, but not the “stark” white and bluish fluorescents. The main areas outside the lab had a warm, slightly golden sun-like tint. Bright lab lights could sometimes make his over-sensitive eyes water, but the rest of the tower was like this elevator...well-lit, but not harshly. 

The class filed into the elevators, voice still carrying on a dozen quiet conversations with Peter’s name, and sometimes MJ and Ned, being a main feature of each of them. Savannah brought up the rear, and when they were all loaded, began the introduction to their first tours. 

“We’ll be starting where SI started. A museum has been established showcasing some of the early discoveries that helped Howard Stark begin his successful career. It’s only a few stories up. You are welcome to take pictures and videos, and there will also be a dedicated tour guide to answer any questions you have. We’ve allotted 45 minutes to this; it’s not a lot, but there’s so much to show you in our Tower!” 

The ride was very short, but in the few seconds it took, Peter heard Dave talking to Flash. What he said wasn’t completely audible, but the phrase “just an intern, no one cares about interns” was clear. So was the doubtful look on Flash’s face. With an internal sigh, Peter wondered what they’d try next.

OMGWTFBBQ

The museum was actually pretty interesting. They’d have videos of the Stark Expo, a small clip of a very young Tony Stark giving a presentation, examples of early weaponry and equipment created by Howard Stark, from bullets to advanced navigation systems for planes. More short clips played on the walls, showing images of Howard Stark working in his lab, accepting awards from industrial organizations and military leaders, and even a bit about his work developing the super soldier serum and his personal efforts in WW2. Peter could have spent the day there, but unfortunately he was spending this time with Flash and his two clowns. 

Flash just looked depressed, and while they were egging him on, he was not cooperating. They had spent their last couple years antagonizing and tormenting Peter for their personal amusement, with Flash being the most physically active in that regards. And now he wasn’t interacting with Peter, and they just couldn’t handle this sudden change in circumstances. Old habits must be hard to break. 

And, when Peter was idly looking at a bit of hydraulics placed out for tourist, flipping it about in his hand and recognizing a design he’d encountered in engineering books written decades later...a foot kicked the back of his knee. It didn’t hurt him, and his reflexes were quick enough to make it look like a mere stumble. It did make him drop the slightly oily and slick metal canister, and as he scrambled to make certain it hadn’t broken in the fall, he heard their brays of laughter. Right before his hands could scoop up the bit of tech, a sneakered foot kicked it away and under a display stand.

He turned and stood up to tell them to knock it off, but as soon as his mouth opened, Not-Dave gave him a shove.

 

“You may think you’re hot shit because you’ve got an internship, but no one cares how much coffee you bring or how many copies you make. You’re still the same worthless little nerd you’ve always been, and you don’t get to forget that, loser.” Dave crowded next to Not-Dave, both of them blocking the smaller Peter from the view of the guides. Flash was nowhere near...and neither were MJ and Ned. Neither of them had been interested in the old hardware; Ned had been immediately sucked into a display of WW2 era Stark-modified radios and receivers, and MJ was watching the videos on the wall with a skeptical and analytical look.

And with his friends across the room and an entire class between the tour guides and them? They’d given up on getting Flash to do something, and had decided to do it themselves. 

They weren’t as smart as Flash, and far too cocky...and Peter saw the small flashing red lights on the ceiling directly above him. Not obvious, but rows of tiny flashing lights acted like miniature landing strips in the ceiling, the patterns moving to meet directly above his head.

He knew what it meant. He’d heard about it, but never seen it. Those tiny, unobtrusive lights were integrated into every room, and they were used to direct people to specific locations. Sometimes it was Friday showing a new employee how to reach the cafeteria, or directing the visitors from a business meeting to the elevators. And, sometimes, the little flashing lights were red and that brought security guards, immediately.

The looks on the faces of Dave and Not-Dave were priceless. A handful of seconds had passed, and LaRon, the museum guide, and two security officers were surrounding Dave and Not-Dave. Every bit of smile and spark was gone from LaRon’s now cold and angry face, and he looked like a beacon of goodwill next to the other three.

“Mr. Parker, our apologies. We’ll be removing them immediately. You may make a statement if you wish but Friday has recorded everything that has occurred on SI property involving them.” The entire class stared with giant eyes as the two students were marched out between the security officers to a side door. LaRon and the museum guide, who was petite but had the look of someone who took no shit, were right behind them. Savannah stepped forward to get the attention of the class as the door clicked shut behind the six people.

“As I said previously, SI takes the safety of its visitors and employees very seriously.” She paused as her StarkTablet vibrated and chimed in her hand, to look down and read it. Surprise very briefly crossed her face. “Assault and threats to any employees are dealt with immediately, and followed up with SI’s legal department. I have been notified that they will not be returning to this tour, and for legal reasons we will not be able to provide more information on them, as at least one is still a minor.”

Dr. Robertson did not look surprised. Flash looked horrified, and Ned and MJ looked smug. Peter made sure to meet Flash’s eyes...and the bully paled as Peter gave him a nod of acknowledgment. 

With those two gone, Flash was lacking support and far too intimidated by the severity and speed of the response to their behavior...which had been far more mild than he usually was guilty of. Peter was looking forward to making that video tonight!


End file.
